So once again this week we're journeying through John
chapter 6 for the Gospel reading.Quite a journey so far, isn't it? Some good, heavy
stuff to tide us through the summer months. A nice diversion from the gospel of
Mark that we had been visiting, and will return to next week. John. I love
John.
So here's the first quiz of the morning: Has anyone
noticed the theme that has pervaded this entire month, that I haven't touched
on in my sermons?It's this: Bread.
Bread is the common thread throughout this chapter,
throughout these encounters, that weaves them all together into one WOW
message, that we hear in today's passage.So let's think back a bit - how has bread been there?
First, we get the feeding of the 5000, where the
brave generosity of a young, nameless boy allows Jesus to demonstrate what
God's abundance looks like- through bread.
Then, having calmed the storm and walked on water,
Jesus and his disciples arrive immediately at Capernaum, and the people there
want Jesus to prove that he's as connected as Moses was by providing for them
manna - daily bread.Then Jesus tells us he is the bread of life, and
rather than merely accepting the gift offered them, the people decry that they
want more - "Give us this bread always."Then we hear Jesus saying he's the bread of life, the
bread from heaven, the living bread, and he invites us to abide in him and he
in us - remember how I spoke of the significance of the bread of life changing
who we are and how we engage in the world.WHEW! Cole's notes of a month of sermons. Anyone else
need to take a breath?Alrighty. So here we are today - the last passage of
the chapter. And: it all starts with bread. The bread that came down from
heaven. The bread that promises eternal life.So. Bread. Jesus is bread. Good stuff. Thank you John
chapter 6.But we're not done just yet. Next quiz! Did anyone,
in paying such rapt attention to the gospel readings this past month, count how
many times Jesus says that he is bread, come down from heaven, the flesh and
blood which provide eternal life?The answer: 7Now, for some of you, that number 7 is going to pop
your head up. That's because it's a
recurring theme in the scriptures - and we've been chatting about it in Bible
Study. The reason 7 is such an important number in the bible is that it
symbolises completeness. Fulfillment. Totality.So when Jesus says 7 times that he is this living
bread, from heaven, and through partaking in this bread we are accepting the
gift that is being offered, we're challenged to recognise it through the lens
of completion and fullness. In the fullness of time, Jesus is the bread of
life. In the completion of the cosmos, Jesus is the bread form heaven. In the
totality of all that is, Jesus' flesh and blood bring us to life eternal.Wow, right? Mind blowing. Life changing.And WOW are we on the receiving end of some really
great stuff here. Bread. The bread of life. The bread of grace. The bread of
promise. The bread of hope. This is not
the bread that will go hard if we leave the bag open, or mouldy if we forget it
in the back of the fridge. This isn't the bread that someone would rather it be
whole wheat, and someone else wants gluten free. This is the spiritual bread.
Nourishment. Daily sustenance that everyone can relate to, and everyone can
attain. As Jesus says in verse 58 "the one who eats this bread will live
forever."So. Sunday morning quiz number 3: what's the catch?There has to be a catch, right? There has to be
SOMETHING in there that is so overwhelming that so many of the people who had
decided to follow Jesus are complaining about it, and saying "This teaching is difficult; who can
accept it?"So what is so difficult? What is so offensive?It's that we have to choose to follow Jesus' words
and examples. We have to believe in God to never be hungry. We're called to
trust in Him to never thirst. We're invited to abide in Christ, and to let him
abide in us. We are supposed to partake in this great mystery to live forever
because of this gift.it doesn't sound that hard, does it? But it can be.
It can be very difficult to be one who chooses to follow the ways of Christ.
Because the path is not a part-time venture, it's not a weekends-only trek.
It's an all-day, every-day commitment to live the life of the people of God.Because when Jesus says "believe in me" -
he doesn't mean it to be conditional on what's going on in our daily lives,
he's encouraging us to engage in an all-embracing relationship with him, so
much so that it highlights and brightens every other relationship we have.When Jesus says "trust in me" - he doesn't
mean it to be up for consideration every once in a while, he means it to be an
unwavering reality that grows stronger and stronger each day, upon which we can
- and ought to - base all of what we do.When Jesus asks for that abiding relationship with
us, he's asking that we be changed by that Holy promise of love and hope and
grace, and to demonstrate those our lives in this realm (and the next) have
been made better for it.When Jesus invites us to partake in the Eucharist, he
challenges us to accept that taking part in the foretaste of the Kingdom means
we intentionally welcome everyone who comes to the table - whether we want to
or not.And that's where it gets hard. That's where our
earthly realities give us pause. That's where the folks in today's gospel got
hung up. Jesus was asking them to welcome everyone to the table - no matter
what their social status (and that was a bigger deal then than now, if you can
believe); no matter what their profession; no matter what their belief.Jesus was asking the people who were there to really
consider why they were there. Had they gathered because everyone else was
gathering? Had they gathered because they only wanted their own immediate needs
met? Had they gathered because they were waiting for free food (it's a tactic
that still works today!). So whatever their reasons were for gathering around
Jesus, he was asking them to change their lives. To believe, to trust, to
abide, to take part.Jesus was asking that they live their lives
differently, focused on the life yet to come and as a result changing their
actions in the life they had right now. Share what you have, as you have
received much from God. Embrace those you dislike, for you have been wrapped in
God's love. Welcome all, even those who would (and have) hurt you, just as God
has received you every time you return.No wonder many in the crowd found it difficult, and
offensive. "Give up my status? Swallow my pride? Forgive someone who hurt
me? Think of someone else first? Love as I want to be loved? Whoa, this isn't
what I signed up for. I just wanted to get stuff - for me. For my family. Not
for them - for me." No wonder people today still find this journey
difficult, and offensive.And yet - not everyone turned away. Not everyone was shocked
by what Jesus said. Rather, the 12 - the ones individually chosen by Jesus as
his apostles - were shocked by the thought of leaving. Simon Peter sums it up
nicely. "To whom can we go?"
he asks. No one else can offer us what you can. No one else can challenge us to
do better the way you do. No one else can inspire us into that complete,
fulfilled, other-worldly faith.So here's your final quiz for the morning, and it's
something only you and God can answer.What bread sustains you? Are you eating the bread of
the earth, which is easier, but temporary? Or are you eating the bread of life,
which comes with great responsibility, but also with eternal life-granting
benefit? Do you believe and trust in the rewards of this life, or in the life
to come? Do you abide in relationship with Christ, or in whatever is popular in
society? Do you choose to take part in earthly treasures, or in the heavenly
feast?Tough question, to be sure. Worthy of prayerful and
careful consideration, I hope. I pray that when you do have the answer, it may
be with similar conviction as Simon Peter, who acknowledged his life had been
changed, was changed, and would forever be changed by the true and living bread
so freely given: "Lord, You have the
words of eternal life. We have believed and come to know that you are the Holy One
of God."
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